When a bow hunter strikes his game, he is often faced with subsequent tracking of the animal as it can live for several hours after being hit, depending upon the accuracy of the hunter's shot. When this occurs, several things could happen. The game could run so far and so fast that the hunter never catches up to it or the wounded animal could be attacked by other wild animals, ruining the meat. Also, instances have been known to occur where other hunters come upon the wounded game and claim it as their own. The occurrence of these situations is quite frequent when dealing with bow-hunting situations. The difficulty experienced in producing an accurate shot with a bow increases the likelihood that it will not produce an instant kill, thus making necessary the aforementioned tracking. Furthermore, these problems are compounded in the situation where the hunter is hunting at dusk, dawn or in cloudy/foggy situations where visibility is limited. As arrows are becoming increasingly expensive, loss of an arrow can be a very costly proposition. Accordingly, the need has developed for a means by which bow hunters can track their arrows in a quick and accurate manner during night time or diminished light hours. The development of the invention herein fulfills this need.
The present invention is a hunting arrow comprising a cylindrical shaft, an arrow head, a nock, and a plurality of vanes provided with a phosphorescent indicator thereon which provides a means for locating and retrieving the hunting arrow. The phosphorescent indicator comprises a phosphorescent paint that is coated thereon the plurality of vanes, or alternately can be located on the nock, to aid in their location and retrieval during low levels of light. The phosphorescent paint will self-luminescence, thereby making the arrow easier to find during the day as well. As a result, whether tracking stricken game or looking for a lost arrow, the use of the present invention ensures that the hunter can quickly locate it and minimize the risk of loss.
Several attempts have been made in the past to provide arrows that can be found easier. U.S. Pat. No. 4,340,930, issued in the name of Carissimi, describes a light assembly for an archer's arrow comprising a lamp and a battery assembly with a switch. However, unlike the present invention, the Carissimi arrow does not have a phosphorescent indicator located thereon a plurality of vanes and/or a nock of an arrow.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,792, issued in the name of Hardison, discloses an archer's arrow having a chemical light source for locating the arrow after flight. However, unlike the present invention, the Hardison arrow uses a chemical light stick that is inserted into a cavity in a transparent plastic arrow nock to help locate the arrow.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,364,499, issued in the name of Jones, discloses an apparatus for illuminating an archer's arrow that provides a nock adapted to receive a bowstring in a drawn position wherein a light source is disposed within the nock. However, unlike the present invention, the Jones arrow comprises a light source that is a chemical light stick only found in the nock.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,211,011, issued in the name of Sutherland, discloses an arrow having a nock with a chemical light source that allows an archer to find and retrieve the arrow easier. However, unlike the present invention, the Sutherland arrow uses a chemical light stick inserted into an end of the arrow as the light source.
None of the prior art particularly describes a hunting arrow with an indicator device comprising a plurality of vanes coated with a phosphorescent paint which will self-luminescence at night and give off radiation in the form of visible light to aid in their location and retrieval that the instant invention possesses. Accordingly, there exists a need for an arrow by which bow hunters can track their arrows in a quick and accurate manner during night time or diminished light hours that operates without the disadvantages as described above.